ATLANTA — The labors of winning in baseball involve at least nine players performing to the best of their ability. So it was fitting that, on Labor Day, Cole Hamels shared a historic moment with other members of the work crew.

Despite Hamels laboring with control and a high pitch count on a steamy day in Atlanta, the southpaw made it through six innings without allowing a hit to the Braves before handing it over to the bullpen without complaint.

Jake Diekman worked an easy seventh inning.

Ken Giles struck out the side in an overpowering eighth.

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And Jonathan Papelbon, getting a save of a different ilk, got a flyout to left, a slow grounder to Jimmy Rollins, and a soft line drive snared by first baseman Darin Ruf to put the wraps on a 7-0 win over the Braves and the 12th no-no in franchise history.

In their 131-season history, the Phillies never had pitchers combine for a no-hitter before this one. In a year where Papelbon has bounced back from an injury-plagued 2013 to reassert himself as one of the game’s top closers, and Diekman and Giles have harnessed their blazing velocity and become a young, promising left-right setup combination, it was fitting they be given the chore of taking the baton from Hamels.

For that, the Phillies’ ace was grateful.

“I know how difficult it is to go out there, throw nine innings, keep a pitch count within reason, knowing that you’re playing a competitive team that’s fighting for a playoff spot,” said Hamels, who sat at a dais with the three relievers following the game. “You know (the Braves) aren’t going to take it lightly.

“I think to be a part of something so special with these three guys and the whole team, there’s no better way to sum it up. We’re a team, we’re with each other seven or eight months a year. I know the season is winding down, and this is a really good moment to cherish.”

The biggest threat to perfection was a tailing line drive to right in the third inning off the bat of Chris Johnson. Marlon Byrd, who went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts in a rare empty day for the Phils’ most consistent run-producer this season, charged hard and had to fully extend with a dive to make the grab. With two Braves on base via walks, it not only preserved the no-hitter, but also kept Atlanta off the scoreboard.

“At that point you’re not thinking no-no,” Byrd said, “but you are thinking save those runs and Cole’s on the mound, so you never want to waste his starts.

“It seems like we don’t get runs when he’s pitching, but it was nice when it was a 1-0 game to come up with that catch.

“It was nice I brought my glove because I didn’t have my bat today. It happened at a perfect time.”

Otherwise, when Hamels was getting Braves hitters to make contact, they were on the ground. Jimmy Rollins had a pair of tough backhand plays in the hole, but one came from slow-footed catcher Gerald Laird and the other off the bat of Braves starter Julio Teheran.

Hamels led off the top of the sixth with a single, moved to second on a bunt by Ben Revere (whose career-high five RBIs were the victim of some serious stolen thunder) and scored on Rollins’ triple. The baserunning reduced the odds Hamels could go the distance from slim to none. When he started the bottom of the sixth with a walk of Freddie Freeman, he knew he would need help.

“I wasn’t able to get ahead of guys. Walking the leadoff hitter will put you in a lot of trouble,” said Hamels, who walked the first two batters of the game and put the first batter of the inning on base in four of his six frames. “It really extends you a little more than you’d like.

“I understood coming around the sixth inning it was going to be a short game. Understanding the situation ... I wasn’t really too worried about it. I have the utmost respect and faith in the bullpen because they’ve been outstanding all year, especially these three guys.

“It was fun to be able to watch them and create something very special.”

Revere broke the game open with a bases-clearing triple in the top of the seventh — after Hamels had been replaced by pinch-hitter Grady Sizemore the batter before and walked to load the bases.

When Diekman came trotting in from the bullpen during the seventh-inning stretch, he looked to the scoreboard to see whom he would face.

“And that’s the first time I realized it,” Diekman said of the no-hitter. “I was like, ‘all right.’”

Diekman, who is 11th in the majors (30 IP minimum) with 12.9 strikeouts per nine innings, struck out Andrelton Simmons and Gerald Laird, then got pinch-hitter Joey Terdoslavich to ground out weakly. In the eighth, Giles, who is ranked ninth in Ks per nine innings at 13.1, blew away the top of Atlanta’s order.

He was more aware of the situation.

“Yeah, I knew from the start,” Giles said of the no-hitter. “I didn’t expect to go in, though. I was hoping Cole would be able to finish it by himself, but it’s always OK to ask for help once in a while.

“It’s a great thing to be a part of.”

From there it was up to Papelbon, who after the game seemed grumpy about the consecutive day games in different towns.

“I think he just wants to lay in bed right now,” Giles said jokingly of Papelbon.

In truth, Papelbon had asked Sandberg before the game if he could get some work Monday. He just didn’t expect it to come with a bunch of hoopla.

“It was definitely different,” said Papelbon, whose opportunity to pitch in the postseason for a contender ended when he wasn’t traded Sunday. “I didn’t have the adrenaline that I would usually have today.

“Two days games in a row, so I’m a little bit tired today. I just went out there and tried to focus on location over velocity and do what I could to preserve the no-hitter.”

Instead of figuring out a way to share the game ball, Hamels decided there was a better place for it.

“That last ball, because it is so special ... I think we are going to dedicate it to David Montgomery,” Hamels said, referring to the Phillies’ part-owner and erstwhile president, who is taking a leave of absence as he battles cancer. “He has been a paramount person in the Phillies’ organization. I think it’s really nice to be able to give it to him because of ... what David and his family has gone through.”

Struggles that reach in every direction for the Phillies, but struggles that could be pushed aside for one momentous afternoon.